Opt For Yoga Over Drugs for Treating Depression
Studies have established that some form of anti-depression medicines are offered to more than 20 million individuals in the US every year. But what should be the most important reason for concern are the great number of adverse reactions often experienced by those who take these anti-depression medications. Effective as they may be for a while, it’s been demonstrated that these anti-depression medicines cause many side effects that could consist of nausea, fatigue, difficulty sleeping and libido problems. Accordingly, a lot of folks are looking for a way of managing depression without medication.
If you would like to attempt addressing your depression difficulties in a more natural approach to preclude these serious adverse reactions, you might want to think about doing yoga. Yoga and its gentle motions and positions are liable to significantly boost the brain’s alpha waves (associated with relaxation) and theta waves (unconscious memory, dreams and emotions). This conclusion is founded on a study that measured brain waves previous to a yoga session lasting two hours, and again following it.
Due to the increased activity of these brain waves, people tend to be more in touch with with their subconscious and emotions. Additionally, after a yoga session, alpha wave activity improves in the right temporal area of the brain. Scientific investigation has demonstrated that folks with depressive disorder tend to experience more alpha activity in the left frontal-temporal area, while optimistic, extroverted folks have more alpha activity on the right side.
As well, when yoga is performed, a noteworthy reduction in the hormone called cortisol happens, in addition to an increase in the hormone prolactin. This is considered by many researchers to be the main factor in creating the anti-depressant result of electroshock therapy.
If this all appears a bit too advanced, maybe a simpler illustration of how yoga is effective for management of depression might be that it stimulates the brain’s motor centers. This causes the blood to flow in the opposite direction of the center of emotional activity; therefore you become more responsive to positive feelings.
Just doing yoga poses won’t be sufficient to control your depression. You also have to include breathing exercises (called pranayama), meditation, (which could be grounded in your religious practices) and a proper diet. These are all important facets of the yoga philosophy that will have an effect on your mental well being.
Therefore, when you next feel depression taking hold of your mind, you may do well to keep in mind a new prescription for dealing with the problem: yoga. It won’t harm you, and it could possibly help you immeasurably.
Depression is a much more serious condition than just feeling a little blue. It’s a real problem that can affect all aspects of a person’s life, from their job to their relationships. Learn more about this disease and what to do about it at Depression Help.